EMI go into reverse

There were further reshuffles at record label EMI last week. Former chief exec Charles Allen has now moved to the ambiguous role of "advisor", with former chairman of EMI publishing Roger Faxon taking his place. What does it mean? Officially, EMI has said that it will now "reposition itself as a comprehensive rights management company serving artists and songwriters worldwide". In other words, the label will now be concentrating on making money from its back catalogue, rather than growing newer acts. Before Allen vacated the CEO seat, he hinted at exactly this sort of strategy, telling Radio 4: "A good example of this is the work we did with the Beatles – we sold 13m albums this year." Is this the best EMI can do? It's a sad state of affairs when a major label focuses its efforts on a band that ceased to exist long ago.